Abstract: A device automatically places marks, such as notches, on solder as that solder is being dispensed to a soldering operation. The device is entirely mechanical, and places the proper amount of tension on the solder without stretching it, and guides the solder from a storage reel to a marking system. The solder is marked by elements located on a marking wheel that rotates next to a grooved wheel. The tensioning is effected by a plurality of grooved wheels around which the solder is trained and which can be adjusted to control the amount of tension applied to the solder.